Robert C. Dullien: Imagine a city focused on service

By Robert C. Dullien

Posted:
04/14/2016 07:45:45 PM MDT

Updated:
04/14/2016 10:45:50 PM MDT

A snowstorm in March produced a familiar scene — another truck stuck on unplowed lower Stony Hill Road just below Bear Mountain Drive in south Boulder. (Robert C. Dullien / Special to the Daily Camera)

Thank you for publishing my guest opinion about a USPS mail truck that got stuck on snow and ice on our street early last winter ("Time for city to focus on residents' practical needs," Daily Camera, Dec. 27). Accompanying this letter is a photo from March 17 — a month ago — depicting a similar scenario. A commercial truck was unable to make it up the snowy, unplowed, street.

In my December report, I made the point that the city of Boulder ought to better take care of the critical needs of citizens. Comments from readers added further material, primarily, that taking care of those needs should come before the pursuit of idealistic experiments.

Talking about the latter, the number $10 million has been mentioned as the amount the city has spent on studying the takeover of the Xcel franchise. If only $2 million of that amount would be set aside for the plowing of steep side-streets, my rough estimate is that amount would cover about 50 years' worth of needed, additional, occasional plowing. Now, there would be a good return on investment!

While on the subject of snow and ice, please study the picture and assess whether the conditions are similar to winter scenes in the city of Portland, Ore. In all the literature about city representatives visiting Portland, there has been little or no mention of the major differences in climate between there and Boulder. Portland gets about three inches of snow total in a year. But that is not all. Temperature, precipitation, wind and sun-related differences are so significant, they must be taken into account.

Boulder is pretty good at producing rock bands, and by "rock," we mean the in-your-face, guitar-heavy, leather-clad variety — you know, the good kind. For a prime example, look no farther than BANDITS. Full Story